Memory and the Beauty of Life

Whenever I hear the opening lyrics of the famous Broadway song “Memory” of “Cats” I can’t help but feel nostalgic on the fleeting moments of life:

Midnight, Not a sound from the pavement, Has the moon lost her memoryShe is smiling alone…

Memory, all alone in the moonlight, I can dream of the old daysLife was beautiful then, I remember the time I knew what happiness wasLet the memory live again…”

What is past will never be repeated again. Life and time unfold swiftly. If we just follow the labyrinth and race of daily living and refuse to pause and reflect for a while to know where we are actually leading to in life and why we are doing all the things that we do, we would probably miss the true meaning and beauty of life. The Chinese billionaire and founder of the global retail giant Alibaba, Jack Ma, once said: “Life is so short. Don’t be so serious about work. Enjoy the lives.” Although a very busy man himself, Jack Ma knows that life is more important than work, that “being is more important than doing” in life. Another saying states: “Work, but don’t forget to live!” So if we are so preoccupied with work and worldly affairs and neglect to reflect on our life, we would miss to appreciate the nobility of living!

Ultimately, what will probably linger into our mind in our dying moments are not our achievement, popularity, and recognition, but our loving memories of people whom we have touched and loved and significant events that reminded us of our ultimate life goals. What would probably make us smile as we struggle our last breath are the good old days when we felt happy that we shared our life with others and achieved our earthly purpose! Like the words of the song “Memory”, we can probably picture ourselves reminiscing the past all alone under the moonlight and re-live the memories and happiness we have felt with others during our earthly existence:

Memory, All alone in the moonlight, I can smile at the old days, Life was beautiful then…I remember the time I knew what happiness was, Let the memory live again…

Indeed, life is precious and beautiful. There is always time for tasks we want to do. But there is only one lifetime to live. Let us not forget then that life is above all a state of “being” rather than “doing”. Let us transcend our earthly worries and enjoy life while the Almighty sustains it for us as His greatest gift to humankind!